Karoline Leavitt, Trump's ‘Machine Gun,’ Has a New Gig at Fox News  —  A fierce and nimble speaker, Ms. Leavitt is the second of Mr. Trump's former press secretaries to join the cable news network.  —  President Trump recruited a fleet of Fox News personalities for his second administration …

Disgraced former House Speaker Dennis Hastert dies at 84  —  The Illinois Republican, the longest-serving GOP speaker in U.S. history, was sentenced to 15 months in prison after leaving Congress for scheming to cover up child molestation accusations.  —  Former Rep. Dennis Hastert …

Campaign ‘all coming from DC,’ Paxton says  —  Ken Paxton is less than a month out from the conclusion of a D.C.-outsider campaign for a Texas U.S. Senate seat that he privately admitted is being run by Washington.  —  “I've never been in a race where I felt less control over the campaign and …

Outgoing Sen. Tillis regrets pivotal vote for Hegseth: 'He's an actor.  He's not a manager'  —  Tillis, who voted to confirm Hegseth last year, said the defense secretary has “not demonstrat[ed] any knowledge of the Department of Defense.”  —  Outgoing Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C. …

White House blocks Politico from Air Force One amid press access lawsuit  —  The White House is refusing to allow Politico on Air Force One on Monday, which means the news organization cannot fulfill its press corps pool responsibilities.  —  A Politico spokesperson confirmed that the publication …

Some Democrats don't expect to fill a Supreme Court vacancy under Trump  —  Democrats need a net gain of four seats to capture the Senate.  If so, they'd control what happens in a vacancy, as Justice Samuel Alito admits he's thought about retirement.  —  WASHINGTON — Senate Minority Leader …

Russian lab worker dies of suspected plague as 200 enter medical observation  —  The female staffer at the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Institute of Siberia and the Far East died from a “pneumonia of undetermined” origin last week, according to a regional governor.

Democrats add six more targets, two in districts Trump carried by 20 points  —  Democrats' House campaign arm is expanding its targets even further into Trump country, as the party grows increasingly bullish they will not just win, but win big next month.  —  The Democratic Congressional …

The Trump Administration is a Cesspit of Corruption  —  And fighting it should be at the heart of the Democratic agenda  —  The cesspit of corruption that is Donald Trump's presidency is finally getting the attention it deserves.  It's about time.  And if a massive blue wave sweeps Washington …

The Doomsday Scenario  —  Even if Democrats crush the midterms, we're in a world of trouble.  —  1. Blue Tsunami?  —  I am bullish on the prospects of Democrats winning the Senate.  One month out, I'd say the rough outcome distribution looks something like this:  —  Can we agree on that?

A Death.  A Funeral.  And the Trump Rally Down the Block.  —  Let's get into it.  Happy Monday.  —  Join Will Sommer and Sam Stein for MAGA Mondays today at 10:00 a.m. EDT on Substack and YouTube.  —  Grief and Fear in Two Ohios … They buried Pierre Damas Bel on Saturday.

“You Kidnapped My Son”  —  For several days this spring, trapped inside a Texas immigration detention center, Luis made frantic phone calls, one after the other, to everyone he could think of.  —  Could anyone help him find his 11-year-old son?  —  He'd last seen Andrés …

Sam Altman to Decoded: ‘The world should accept some bad things happening’ for the benefits of AI  —  OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said there remains a fundamental difference in worldview between his company and rival Anthropic on artificial intelligence regulation, arguing in an exclusive interview …

Trump's economic tightrope messaging of strong economy, high prices  —  President Trump's economic officials acknowledge that a strong economy alone will not persuade Americans that they are better off under this president. … - It is a high-wire messaging act just weeks before the midterms …

CIA Report Warns Israel Could Head Toward Civil War, Total Collapse  —  As a reader-funded independent news outlet, we operate free from the influence of governments, advertisers, and corporate backers.  This is essential to our mission: to report on what matters most, beholden only to the truth.

Soldiers Wounded in Iranian Drone Strike Say They Aren't Getting Proper Care  —  The shrapnel hit Army Lt. Col. Arturo Lincón's body like shattered glass.  —  One chunk of metal lodged into the left side of his jaw.  Another piece sliced through his salivary gland before bouncing off …

Trump plans executive order seeking to bring down high diesel costs  —  President Donald Trump plans to announce Monday executive actions aimed at lowering the high fuel costs weighing on Republicans ahead of the midterms, according to three people familiar with the plans.

A Democratic Senate Should Adopt Secret Impeachment Ballots on a Priority Basis  —  Such a change, requiring no constitutional amendment, would free senators to vote their judgment instead of their fears  —  At the Philadelphia Convention in 1787, James Madison was determined to persuade …

DOJ sued for records on ‘unprecedented’ plan to deploy 1,000 election monitors in midterms  —  The NAACP sued the Trump administration Friday, seeking records about its plan to deploy roughly 1,000 federal personnel to polling places during the 2026 midterms.

Senator's ‘Zombie’ Campaign Committee Shuts Down 13 Years After His Death  —  More than 13 years after Sen. Frank Lautenberg died, his Senate campaign committee has officially departed as well.  —  Lautenberg for Senate filed termination paperwork with the Federal Election Commission on Sunday …

Supreme Court vacates lower court ruling that Washington map discriminated against Latino voters  —  The Supreme Court on Monday reversed two pro-voter decisions in cases related to Washington's legislative redistricting, sending them back to a lower court for new proceedings in light …

The Key Point Being Overlooked  —  The Russian escalation talk proves one key thing  —  Before I get to this piece, I have a little announcement for history readers.  My book: The Strategists: Churchill, Stalin, Roosevelt, Mussolini, and Hitler—How War Made Them and How They Made War …

Texas Pediatricians Face Paxton Investigations for Vaccinating Children  —  Ken Paxton, the Texas attorney general and Republican Senate candidate, has alleged a sprawling profit-driven conspiracy.  Pediatricians say the accusations are an attempt at intimidation.

Supreme Court declines to take up school ban on 'Let's Go Brandon' shirts  —  The Supreme Court will not hear a dispute over whether a Michigan public school district can bar students from wearing clothing emblazoned with “Let's Go Brandon,” a popular conservative slogan used to mock former President Biden.

Don't Bet On The Fever Breaking  —  Democrats have to be ready to box Trump in, even if Republicans in Congress close ranks around him, the way they always have.  —  ∙ Paid  —  Let me inject you with a dash of hopium before we spend the next month huffing into a paper bag.

Job numbers make clear that Trump has a reality problem, not a public relations problem  —  To date, the White House hasn't even tried to explain why the job market worsened after the president's second term began.  —  With public opinion polls showing broad public dissatisfaction with the economy …

The surprising, cut-throat race for Los Angeles mayor  —  Karen Bass is fighting for her political life as progressives battle to lead the US's second-largest city  —  Karen Bass has never lost an election.  But this fall, she faces the fight of her political life.

Crypto PAC to spend in 32 House races  —  A deep-pocketed super PAC network funded by the cryptocurrency industry is set to deploy its war chest to help 32 House candidates spanning both parties in the final weeks before the midterm elections, the group announced Monday.

Plea agreement hearing set for ex-CIA officer found with gold bars  —  David Rush has been held in custody since his arrest in May, and his defense team had been working with federal prosecutors on a possible plea deal.  —  WASHINGTON — A plea agreement hearing in federal court has been set …